Author: Russell Cooley

A small girl sits alone in a room. In front of her on the table sits a large, pink marshmallow.

She stares at it longingly.

Suddenly she reaches her hand out to it and then, with a sudden change of mind, pulls her hand back. She sits on both of her hands and stares uncomfortably at the marshmallow for another 10 minutes.

This scene played out in a small room in Stanford University in the 1960s where a psychologist called Walter Mischel tried out his new study [1]. Mischel and his team of researchers put a marshmallow in front of each child and told them that they could either eat it immediately or wait until the researcher returned in a few minutes at which stage they would get two marshmallows.

Some children waited and were rewarded. Other children just couldn’t stop themselves from eating the marshmallow.

This simple experiment is a test of what is called delayed gratification, the ability to hold off on something you want now in anticipation of a bigger reward later.

What is incredible about this research is that Mischel followed the children over five decades. The children who had delayed eating the marshmallow when they were 4 had much better willpower throughout their lives [2]. They had stronger academic scores, better social connections and were less susceptible to stress [1].

We can think of many situations where delayed gratification may apply. Do you forgo a night out in to study for your exam in anticipation of getting the job you want? Do you put in extra effort in work now to improve your chances of getting a promotion? Do you smoke one cigarette now or do you push through the craving?

Of course we all give in sometimes but generally speaking if you can delay gratification at least some of the time it will stand to you in what you want to achieve.

Ok so…what if you were the child who would have eaten the marshmallow?

There are techniques that we can use to improve our ability to delay gratification. The craving that you get for the cigarette or the marshmallow is part of the ‘hot’ system in your mind. This is when you think about how sweet and delicious the marshmallow will taste when you eat it. The ‘cool’ system is the more rational part of your mind that considers the long-term implications of eating it versus waiting [3].

You may be able to override the ‘hot’ impulse by thinking ‘cool’ thoughts. That may be actively thinking through the consequences before rushing into something, distracting yourself from the immediate reward or just imagining it in a more abstract way. Instead of thinking about how much you’d like to go to the pub now can you envision your disappointment if you fail the exam?

It might not always work but trying to stop the ‘hot’ system from taking over might just get you through the worst of the cravings until you’re rewarded with your two marshmallows.

Visit our stand in the exhibition hall and meet our Head of Business Development, Darren Ross, to learn more about Pip, how it can help you practice biofeedback techniques and discuss our stress expert, reseller and research partnerships.

WIRED events are designed to cut through the noise and deliver insights into what’s coming next. Wired Health will take place in London on Friday 29th April. This one day summit will bring together thought leaders, innovators and senior health care providers to discuss the future of Healthcare.

We are delighted to have been invited back to participate in the Clinic, an exciting and innovative element of WIRED Health. The Clinic is a curated space, like a gallery, of brands hand-picked to showcase the latest innovations, products and technologies. It will allow attendees to interact and demo the future of health technology.

Enterprise Ireland, the Irish Government Trade Agency, will be showcasing the best Irish technology at SXSW Interactive and we’re delighted to announce that Pip is one of the products being showcased. The 23rd annual SXSW Interactive Festival will take place March 11th – 15th 2016 in Austin, Texas. An incubator of cutting-edge technologies and digital creativity, the event features a five day programme showcasing a preview of what is unfolding in the world of technology.

Visit the Ireland@SXSW at Booth 1007 to meet the Pip team and learn more about Pip and learn more about our partnerships programme.

The Pip team will be exhibiting and presenting at the Digital Health Show in Sydney, 1-3rd April. Taking place at the Hordern Pavilion & Royal Hall of Industries, Sydney, this 3 day show includes a packed schedule of presentations, seminars and demos showcasing the future of healthcare.

Innovation Kickstart is an interactive seminar showcasing cutting edge Health Tech products. Marie Clarke will be presenting how the Pip can help manage stress at 1.30pm on Saturday 2nd April. She will also be presenting how the Pip can help manage stress 10.30am on Sunday 3rd April at the Health Innovation Theatre.

You can also meet the Pip team at our stand “HP4″ in health Tech Start up Alley and learn more about Pip, how it helps manage stress and our partnerships programme.

The Society’s Annual Conference attracts academics, researchers and practitioners from around the world. As well as top keynote speakers, presentations on recent research, this event includes the Society’s Award Ceremony and a competition for the best poster presentation.

Meet the Pip team at our stand in the Exhibition Area and learn more about Pip and our Stress Expert, Research and Reseller Partnerships.